German petitions call for EU-wide PFAS phase-out as industry resistance mounts

The European Parliament’s Petitions Committee (PETI) has presented two petitions coming from Germany calling for the phase-out of PFAS. Non-profit organization Safe Food Advocacy Europe (SAFE) has endorsed the petitions, calling for the elimination of PFAS from food packaging across the EU.

After detailed discussion, it was decided to keep the petition on the universal ban of PFAS and the petition on water pollution caused by PFAS degradation products open for further deliberation, signaling continued support from the PETI Committee.

Luigi Tozzi, deputy director at SAFE, tells Packaging Insights: “We welcome the decision by the European Parliament’s PETI Committee to maintain the petition to ban PFAS in the absence of meaningful action on the side of the European Commission (EC).”

“The EC must take the health and environment hazards posed by these chemicals seriously. These dangers have been extensively proven, they are cumulative and cause greater harm to children. This is a major public health problem, and we have to take it seriously.”

Industry resistance

The second personal hearing on the PFAS ban was held during the first PETI meeting of the year. The first one took place before the PETI Committee in October 2023. 

During this latest session, Doris Schmidt, the second chairwoman of No PFAS Manching, reiterated the group’s position and noted the strong resistance coming from industries including chemical, pharmaceutical, microchip, and battery production.

There is growing public concern over the environmental and health risks posed by chemicals in packaging.Earlier this month, Zero Waste Europe (ZWE) released a statement asserting that industrial lobbying is a key factor behind the EU’s rising PFAS pollution levels. ZWE suggested that industries invest millions of euros to protect their profits.

As part of the R3PACK project, SAFE is calling for revisions to the Food Contact Material Regulation and the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.

“This petition highlighted the need to speed up the review process of the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), which has been stalling for the past years,” says Tozzi. 

“The hearing provided the opportunity to present arguments for a universal ban of PFAS and to listen to the opinions of the participating members of the European Parliament.”

Calls for immediate prevention

The EC is awaiting assessments from the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), which is currently reviewing Germany’s proposal to classify PFAS as toxic to reproduction. The EC has also tasked the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) with reviewing health-based reference values for trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a substance that forms during the breakdown of PFAS. 

According to the EC, outcomes of the assessments are likely to be available by October 2025.

Tozzi says that SAFE supports an immediate PFAS ban prior to the ECHA assessment. 

“We believe that the EU has enough scientific evidence on the danger that PFAS can cause on human health and the environment provided by various national governments of the member states and the ECHA itself,” he adds.

“In situations where there is a risk, and the use of a substance is likely to produce adverse effects on human health, the European institutions have the power to take preventive measures without waiting for the scientific community to conclude a full risk assessment.”